The New England Patriots are holding on to hope that their impressive season will end atop the AFC.

New England is tied with the Denver Broncos for the first seed in the conference, but thanks to the Broncos’ two wins over the Las Vegas Raiders, Denver will win the tiebreaker.

With recent news surfacing earlier this week that the Broncos’ Week 18 opponent, the Los Angeles Chargers, will be resting starters against Denver, the Chargers’ win that New England needs seems to be a long shot.

Even so, head coach Mike Vrabel told reporters on Wednesday that the Patriots’ starters...

One day after news broke that Stefon Diggs was facing charges of strangulation and assault, another New England Patriots starter is making headlines for all the wrong reasons.

Christian Barmore is looking at a domestic assault charge, as first reported by WCVB-TV Boston. Court documents show the he is scheduled to be arraigned for assault and battery on a family/household member charges on Feb. 3, 2026 in Attleborough District Court.

The charge stems from an incident on Aug. 8. Barmore and the victim got into an alleged fight over the air conditioning in his bedroom and also had another fight...

It’s the final week of the NFL regular season, which means Drake Maye and Matthew Stafford only have one game left to strengthen their NFL MVP cases.

By many stats, the New England Patriots quarterback appears to have the edge over Stafford, who’s faded a bit down the stretch for the Los Angeles Rams. Maye has more total yards, a better completion rate, a better QBR, a better record and a better passer rating, leading the league in several offensive categories.

However, he’s also compiled those numbers against the league’s easiest schedule. Meanwhile, Stafford has faced the league’s sixth-hardest strength...

In back-to-back weeks, the New England Patriots managed to punch their ticket to the NFL playoffs and clinch the AFC East championship. With the regular season coming to a close, they have something else on the line: they are playing for the No. 1 seed in the AFC on Sunday.

In order to get it, though, the Patriots will not just need to beat the visiting Miami Dolphins but also hope for some help from the Los Angeles Chargers. As a look at this week’s clinching scenarios shows, after all, they cannot leapfrog the currently top-seeded Denver Broncos unless they...

TEAM TALK

• Game Preview, Patriots vs. Dolphins: Series breakdown, Tale of the Tape, What to look for; More.
• Broadcast Info: How to watch/listen to Patriots-Dolphins.
• Mic’d Up: Zak Kuhr calls the defense vs. Jets. (10 min. video)
• Highlights: How we won the AFC East. (1.30 min. video)
• Patriots Unfiltered: Jets recap, division champs, AFC/playoff picture, (2 hours)

LOCAL LINKS

• Mike D’Abate finds Mike Vrabel is focused on goals that go beyond winning the division title.
• Steve Balestrieri breaks open his jumbo pack of glitter and rainbow stickers for this week’s Patriots Report Card....

The optimism surrounding the New England Patriots in light of their recent success, including qualifying for the playoffs and winning the AFC East, came to a screeching halt on Tuesday. Wide receiver Stefon Diggs, one of the team’s most important contributors this season, is facing criminal charges stemming from an alleged incident earlier this month.

Those charges include felony strangulation or suffocation as well as misdemeanor assault and battery, according to legal filings. His attorney virtually appeared in Dedham District Court on Tuesday, denying the allegations on his client’s behalf.

With that appearance in the rear-view mirror, all is quiet...

The Patriots have a big problem on their hands with Stefon Diggs. So, how will they handle it?

That remains to be seen, as much is undetermined after Diggs was charged with felony strangulation and misdemeanor assault stemming from an alleged Dec. 2 incident involving a female private chef. However, through a statement provided on Tuesday, New England might’ve offered a clue at how it’s approaching the situation.

“The New England Patriots are aware of the accusations that have been made regarding Stefon Diggs,” the statement said. “Stefon has informed the organization that he categorically denies the allegations. We support...

The Patriots have a big problem on their hands with Stefon Diggs. So, how will they handle it?

That remains to be seen, as much is undetermined after Diggs was charged with felony strangulation and misdemeanor assault stemming from an alleged Dec. 2 incident involving a female private chef. However, through a statement provided on Tuesday, New England might’ve offered a clue at how it’s approaching the situation.

“The New England Patriots are aware of the accusations that have been made regarding Stefon Diggs,” the statement said. “Stefon has informed the organization that he categorically denies the allegations. We support...

The first win of head coach Mike Vrabel’s New England Patriots tenure arrived against the Miami Dolphins. Things have changed from September to January. Some personnel, too.

Two players who once called Hard Rock Stadium home currently find themselves at Gillette Stadium. Seven more on-field connections can be found on the other side of the AFC East.

Between the active rosters, practice squads and reserve lists, here’s a glance heading into Sunday’s 4:25 p.m. ET season finale in Foxborough.

MIAMI

JaMycal Hasty, running back — Yet to become a standard elevation, Hasty has resided on the Dolphins’ practice squad...

Two interior offensive linemen visited Gillette Stadium to begin the final week of the regular season.

The New England Patriots hosted free agents Doug Kramer Jr. and Thomas Perry for workouts on Tuesday, per the NFL transaction wire.

Kramer, 27, entered the league with the Chicago Bears in the sixth round of the 2022 draft. The 6-foot-2, 300-pound Illinois product has also been a member of the Arizona Cardinals and Seattle Seahawks. In between arrived a second stint with the organization that filled out his card at pick No. 207 overall. He has handled 86 snaps on offense and 52...

The New England Patriots made a couple of moves on their practice squad on Tuesday, and one of them was re-signing Marshall Lang.

Lang was originally an undrafted free agent out of Northwestern and signed with the Seattle Seahawks in May. The Seahawks released him on Aug. 26. Lang signed with the Patriots’ practice squad on Oct. 14, but was released just two days later.

Lang landed back with the Seahawks practice squad on Nov. 6 and was released again on Nov. 18. He will once again be with the Patriots. The Seahawks have released him twice this season, but...

The New England Patriots have their eyes set on the playoffs and continue to make transactions on their 53-man roster and practice squad.

The Patriots’ 53-man roster could be getting some big news soon, with the returns of Will Campbell and Milton Williams looming. However, on Tuesday, they announced they are releasing a player from their practice squad.

The Patriots released 25-year-old running back Jashaun Corbin from the practice squad. He was signed to the Patriots’ practice squad on Oct. 7 and was placed on the practice squad injured reserve later that month. Corbin originally signed with the New York...